Cane

21

GIA

ily disdaini

sun, too ind

rkens for night's barbecue, A feast of moon and men and

eyes and cane

n making folk-song

And silence breaks the bud of knoll and hill,

promise of a

he pyramidal

ghosts of tre

ps and stumps

oof of forme

s of king and caravan, High-priests, an ostrich, and a

22

ees are guitars, Strumming, pine

ise. . the cho

a vesper t

sinous and so

virgin lips to cornfield concubines, Bring d

,

23

E

nto her eyes.

d plaintive r

erever your g

ested, it immedi

direction of he

own slightly da

ird's wing mi

her upper lip.

ht her eyes, I c

quiline, Semit

cantor sing, if

your owm sorr

ith his, you va

w the curves of

to their common

n this, that th

othing that was

one could see,

nothing was to

you will have o

yes desired no

24

E

; there was no

d. Men saw her

n's eyes said t

n she was you

t no joy from it

bound to her (qu

other girls), f

a lifetime to fu

y could find n

to her, and hung

trace of what s

new men who ca

one did who eve

be denied. Me

her their bodie

tired of them, I

the life of her s

began to turn

rifling thing to

her, baffled

elves that some

ng for her : sen

m it came from, Watch out for

ething with no

A

ed it to her, re

who had tricke

u know, men ar

ich they cannot

be a woman. S

act was that th

ion crept into th

omehow above t

t she was not

became a virg

thern town is

you will belie

to mate is the

arly, black fol

s black folks

hus far. What w

rrive at only b

er al

se, could see h

alked up the D

, you'd be most

ing of her porch, Back propped ag

there was a na

26

E

e her head cam

she never took t

if it were suns

molten and glor

he fringe of p

he gray cabin o

ng folk-song w

wed a cow that

d feed on cotton

not they'd set

orizon, though h

If it were dusk, Then they'd w

hich you could

lared across the

erever they loo

waver back. Li

e seemed to flow

with the soft l

th. A young N

, spellbound,

ng in a buggy h

f he was to get

I first saw her

th a fellow wh

27

A

m the North and

and stuck-up) w

I asked him w

was all that I

s already thou

round; I let it g

re concerned. B

if I heard a Je

ng rose above t

And I felt bou

something I wo

about from to

w the futility

picture if you

girl sitting at

the indifferent

she listen to f

would say, and

e came up Nort

r a lawyer, say

along — that is

o have had exp

ve is not a thi

ttered by chang

on, Chicago, or

E

en of Georgia,

by the bestowal

know men in th

hey could not.

along State Str

to a southern t

aggressive. S

oncubine. . .

ere was myself

lk, of course.

s upon new hor

what for? Her

to lose their s

uched her. I ask

nce if you sit i

es her road), What thoughts wou

with the though

the sight of a

them; what tho

seen her in a

, as she sat th

in thundered

the next stati

ke her where?

A

otten her as so

adena, Madison, Chicago, Bos

sweetheart about

an help me, and

ng I would do

ike on purpose, And stopped t

t they moved a

f I knew how t

Miss So-and-S

nefit, rabbit and possum hunting, The new soft drink they had a

gro's migrati

the Bible — to

sur or nassur,

an to wonder i

ility had played

e a walk, " I at

coming after s

enough, I gues

at. Something t

3

E

id just that as

r bodies. I trie

nk she underst

ade my throat c

a way I'd thought, But never s

he porches gapi

d?" She meant

ple. She mean

ripe for cutting, The branch

reddish leaves

we sat down. D

erceptible pro

ith a purple haz

as I always do

sk. I felt that

ibly immediat

me had I had

orgia more ofte

ck woman once

ew her in charco

When one is on t

anything can c

abit, I suppose